Viewing cable 04VILNIUS1243 Title: People in the Provincial Town will Vote for Change

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Created

Released

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04VILNIUS1243

2004-10-08 12:54:00

2011-08-30 01:44:00

UNCLASSIFIED

Embassy Vilnius

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 001243
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/NB
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOVLH
SUBJECT: People in the Provincial Town will Vote for Change
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Summary
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Â¶1. Voters in the small town of Rietavas, in western
Lithuania, see themselves as microcosm for the nation (if a
bit more agricultural) and believe their vote in the
upcoming election will mirror the country's vote as a
whole. In Rietavas, it appears that the Labor Party will
win big. End summary.
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Lithuania on a smaller scale
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Â¶2. Rietavas, a town in the western part of Lithuania, with
a population of 11,000, boasts an active economic life
comparable to that in the country's larger cities. With an
unemployment rate of 5.9 percent, which is just below the
national average, and 35 percent of the population engaged
in agriculture, Rietavas is reaping the early rewards of EU
accession. The local animal waste products processing
company enjoys the benefit of 35 million litas from the EU
pre-accession fund. Several construction companies are
registering record growth, echoing the overall boost of the
construction sector at the national level. The small town
even has a college "Zemaitijos Kolegija," which has
efficiently shifted its focus from agriculture to
management and economics.
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Political Situation
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Â¶3. Rietavas is generally an apolitical town, but these
elections are different, says the director of the
municipality executive branch Vytautas Diciunas. It
suffices to pass by a local store to hear snippets of
conversation focused on election topics. At the height of
the campaign, eight candidates representing major political
parties are all active contenders. The list ranges from
prominent Labor party candidate, former citizen of Rietavas
and post-soviet bureaucrat, Jonas Jagminas, who is rumored
to be in the running for the position of minister of
agriculture, to television journalist, Conservative, and
carpetbagger, Vitas Klimas, to current MP and Liberal
Centrist, Audrius Klisonis. According to a local member of
the Liberal Center Party, Zigmas Dargevicius, the Labor
Party and Liberal Center Party candidates have the greatest
chance of winning. The director of the municipal
administration calls Rietavas a litmus test: Predicting the
vote in Rietavas will provide the national election
results.
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Labor Party is riding to the victory
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Â¶4. Even opponents of the Labor Party recognize that Labor
has the best chance of winning. Its campaign is the most
active and visible with respect to local media coverage,
meetings, rallies, and other local events. Enormous
financial resources and an effective membership enrollment
drive have rendered the other parties powerless. The
skilled former leaders of the kolkhoz (soviet era
agricultural collectives), now Labor Party leaders, tell
the provincial residents what they want to hear.
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Farmers miss the "old days"
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Â¶5. A local farmer told us that he and his neighbors are
unhappy with the current government. They expect something
better from new parties in power. The Labor Party appeals
to them as a political new comer with bright promises to
increase pensions. Oddly, the Labor Party, while
representing change and progress, has kindled nostalgia for
the "old days," and at least one third of farmers plan to
vote for Labor. In contrast, personality, not party
promises, will win the votes of the local intelligentsia,
says the local librarian. She will vote for a candidate
she knows personally who has helped her in the past. The
director of the municipal administration confirmed that the
elite will choose their candidate on the basis of personal
criteria -- looks or eloquence often win here, he said.
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Comment
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Â¶6. There is political excitement and hope in Rietavas.
People in this small provincial town are doing well, but
want to do better. They will vote for change (Labor)
rather than more of the same - even if "the same" has not
been so bad.
MULL